PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION
John 1:1-4
Reader: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All
things came into being through him, and without him not one thing
came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the
life was the light of all people.
All: Gracious God, as we open the scriptures today, speak your
Word to us, that we may be recreated in your Son, Jesus Christ.
In his life, may we have new life. In his light, may we see light.
Amen.
FIRST READING
Genesis 1:1-8, 14-19
1When God began to create[a] the heavens and the earth, 2 the
earth was complete chaos, and darkness covered the face of the deep,
while a wind from God[b] swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God
said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the
light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God
called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was
evening and there was morning, the first day.
6 And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters,
and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 So God made the dome
and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that
were above the dome. And it was so. 8 God called the dome Sky. And
there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to
separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons
and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to
give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great
lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the
night—and the stars. 17 God set them in the dome of the sky to give light
upon the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate
the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there
was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
Reader: Word of God. Word of life.
All: Thanks be to God.
SECOND READING Job 28:4-38
1“Surely there is a mine for silver
and a place for gold to be refined.
2 Iron is taken out of the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.
3 Miners put[a] an end to darkness
and search out to the farthest bound
the ore in gloom and deep darkness.
4 They open shafts in a valley away from human habitation;
they are forgotten by travelers;
they sway suspended, remote from people.
5 As for the earth, out of it comes bread,
but underneath it is turned up as by fire.
6 Its stones are the place of sapphires,
and its dust contains gold.
7 “That path no bird of prey knows,
and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.
8 The proud wild animals have not trodden it;
the lion has not passed over it.
9 “They put their hand to the flinty rock
and overturn mountains by the roots.
10 They cut out channels in the rocks,
and their eyes see every precious thing.
11 The sources of the rivers they probe;
hidden things they bring to light.
12 “But where shall wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?
13 Mortals do not know the way to it,
and it is not found in the land of the living.
14 The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’
and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
15 It cannot be gotten for gold,
and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.
16 It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
in precious onyx or sapphire.[e]
17 Gold and glass cannot equal it,
nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.
18 No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal;
the price of wisdom is above pearls.
19 The chrysolite of Cush cannot compare with it,
nor can it be valued in pure gold.
20 “Where then does wisdom come from?
And where is the place of understanding?
21 It is hidden from the eyes of all living
and concealed from the birds of the air.
22 Abaddon and Death say,
‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’
23 “God understands the way to it,
and he knows its place.
24 For he looks to the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.
25 When he gave to the wind its weight
and apportioned out the waters by measure,
26 when he made a decree for the rain,
and a way for the thunderbolt,
27 then he saw it and declared it;
he established it and searched it out.
28 And he said to humankind,
‘Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
and to depart from evil is understanding.’ ”
Reader: Word of God. Word of life.
All: Thanks be to God.